A New Opportunity

May 22, 2009 - USRowing adds yet another collegiate championship regatta into the spring racing mix. Besides the risk of the race dates coinciding, isn't it a little absurd that there are so many "national" championships? That's three "national" championships we have now in the United States.

What is USRowing thinking? IRA is widely considered the national championship for men's racing. A new championship not just under the name of but actively controlled by USRowing pits the prestigious Intercollegiate Rowing Association against what amounts to its parent company. If you want to row internationally, the only way to do it is through USRowing.

Rowing championships are messed up enough as it is. Take a look at the ACRA championship results. In the men's varsity eight, Michigan destroyed the competition, finishing nearly eight seconds ahead of the UC Davis. Last place was Texas, with a 6:31.1. See the strength gap?

It's even more pronounced in the men's varsity four with cox, which Penn State won with a 6:40.2. LSU staggered across the petite-finals line with a 7:31.0. In the third-level final, Binghamton finished with a 7:10.6 (bad seeding?) while Ohio State struggled for a 7:42.5, over a minute behind Penn State.

What I like about the ACRAs, though, is the emphasis on small boats.

Everyone knows the Varsity 8 is the holy grail of collegiate rowing, showing you can field eight strong rowers at your school. But what about schools that only have, say, four great rowers and twelve other mediocre ones? Question: Do you put together a strong four and a mediocre eight or a mediocre eight and a mediocre four?

Answer: You put your strongest guys in the eight, because that is your Texas Football Team(TM). Your Texas Football Team wins you respect, even if all the players are weaker than those soccer pansies (read: scullers and other technically good rowers, etc.) who are only good for giving you kickers. You lead with your Texas Football Team because it's the biggest penis you have to flaunt.

USRowing could really shine in offering elite-level competition in small boats and sculling (1x, 2-, 2x as well as 4- and 4x). This is an unfilled niche in the rowing championship market. Both the NCAA and IRA championships focus on big boats (eights and fours). The USRowing championships would offer a nice championship for smaller schools and those that wish to focus more on sculling.

From the press release:

"The purpose of creating this event is to provide a post-season regatta for the collegiate community that truly reflects an open format across multiple boat classes," said USRowing Chief Executive Officer Glenn Merry. "Our junior programs have really embraced small boat rowing and sculling, and this regatta will provide similar racing opportunities for collegiate rowers."

That "open format" does not exist now, but USRowing stands able to really create it with this championship. Long under-represented, sculling and small-boats offer a great opportunity for smaller schools and teams that do not have the recruiting power of D-I and Ivy schools.

Who are you?

So I'm on the Drudge Report today and I see the top banner ad is for the antioxidant resveratrol, which it claims is supposed to reduce aging.

Well, I just so happen to be taking part in a resveratrol study right now, to determine its effect on athletic performance. I clicked on the link to learn more, and it took me to this site, news3news.com. I read all about this reporter, Katie Wilson, who researched and tried resveratrol etc. etc. Hmmm, I thought, this looks like an advertisement.

So I clicked on a link. Bingo.

Supposedly "News 3 News" is out of Sacramento, California. There is even real-time weather in a sidebar and news from California at the bottom of the page. But all links take you to the ResvPure homepage. Ah ha! You got me!

It turns out there is a legitimate "News 3" in Sacramento, KCRA. But who is this Katie Wilson? After some research, I don't think that's her real name. This was the closest I found, but she parts her hair a different way.

Of course, you should be suspicious any time you click on an ad and are directed to a seemingly legitimate news or blog. But who knows who else links to this?

Politics as a Religious Experience

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

I think it's sensational that Sonia Sotomayor has been nominated for the Supreme Court by President Barack Obama. Apparently so does Matt Drudge, his headline reading, "Obama Picks Latina." So this is a black man nominating an...American...whose parents are Puerto Rican...who is a...no! a woman? That noun ends in an "a" - it's feminine!

Oh will the diversity never end!?

Let's take a look at the current Supreme Court breakdown:

John Roberts: White Male, Roman Catholic
John Paul Stevens: White Male, Protestant
Antonin Scalia: White Male, Roman Catholic (half Italian)
Anthony Kennedy: White Male, Roman Catholic (Not a "real" Kennedy)
David Souter: White Male, Episcopalian
Clarence Thomas: Black Male, Roman Catholic (Succeeded Thurgood Marshall)
Ruth Bader Ginsburg: White Female, Jewish
Stephen Breyer: White Male, Jewish
Samuel Alito: White Male, Roman Catholic

Okay, that's:
89% White vs. 75% of the population*
89% Male vs. 49% of the population*

*Based on 2000 Census

So clearly we're under representing women and minorities, right? But just take a look at the religions:

56% Catholic vs. 25% of the population
22% Jewish vs. 1% of the population
11% Protestant vs. 51% of the population (Protestant meaning Christian but not Catholic)
11% Episcopalian vs. 1% of the population

Oy vey! How did all those Jews and Catholics get into the Supreme Court?

While we're diversifying the Court by increasing both the woman and minority categories, we're gaining another Catholic, making 2/3 of the Court Roman Catholic and wiping out Episcopalians entirely.

But even without her nomination, I've noticed a very disturbing trend in the homogeneity the United States Supreme Court (that's homogeneity as in "sameness," not "gayness"). A full 44% of the Supreme Court is controlled by men named John or Anthony. Where are all the other names? So far a Christopher has not been chosen, though John has been the name of 9% of all Supreme Court Justices to have served.

Indeed, the lack of diversity is a shame.

Two scoops, with sprinkles.

Oops.

Though I walk throught the valley...

The separation of Church and State.

Dial Denial

It's time to get a landline, because it might just decrease my rampant binge-drinking.

In and article entitled, "More Americans Drink And Dial On Cell Phones: Is the U.S. turning into a wireless, drunken nation?" Channel Matters reported on a recent CDC study connecting binge drinking and cell phone use:

A new study from the Centers for Disease Control released Wednesday found that more than one in every five Americans are now using only mobile phones, and pulling the plugs on their landlines. The study also found that Americans who choose to use only mobile phones also are more likely to be binge drinkers.

It continues:

Results from the July through December 2008 study also found that for some reason, the prevalence of binge drinking (defined as having five or more alcoholic drinks in one day during the past year) among wireless-only adults (36.7 percent) was nearly twice as high as the prevalence among adults living in households that had landline phones only (19.7 percent).

Five drinks in one day over the past year? It's a good thing they didn't do this poll at a college, where no one has a landline and many drink that much at least once a week. Oh, wait... The CDC might be onto something... But seriously, five drinks in one day in the past 365 days? If we measured obesity by how much food a person ate one one day in the last year, I'd be screwed.

My post-erg marathon (42,195 meters) meal:

1. Bacon, tomato, and cheese egg-white omelette
2. Bagel with cream cheese
3. Belgian waffle with syrup
   
4. Bowl of cereal
5. Homefries
   
6. Banana
7. Glass of chocolate milk
8. Glass of orange juice
9. Glass of cranberry juice
10. 2 Glasses of water

I must be so fat. I wonder if that has anything to do with the fact that I'm a neurotic e-mail checker.

But I misled you a bit:

No further information was released about these findings and the CDC didn't attempt to explain the correlation between binge drinking and cell phone-only usage.

For that matter, so did Channel Matters, which just goes to show that if it bleeds, it leads, even if if the headline (sub-header, in this case) lies to you.

Have a good one, I'm going to go have less than five beers and call my friends on my cell.

Beware of Cheap Coffee?

So despite loving Gimme Coffee (woo, go local!), I am on a Starbucks mailing list because occasionally they send out coupons for free coffee. And Starbucks coffee ain't cheap.

Funny that this is their new advertising move.

My favorite new reads: "Beware of a cheaper cup of coffee. It comes with a price."
Notice that Starbucks is not saying, "cheap cup" but rather "cheaper cup," as if any cup of coffee below their price is inferior. I find it strange that during a time of increased financial awareness, Starbucks not not only embraces but flaunts its image, performing an about-face on its $1 cup experiment in January 2008.

A close second: "This is what coffee tastes like when you pour your wallet heart into it."